Christmas Tour of Homes creates unique experience with benefits for the community

Stephanie, from left, and Skeet Glover will be showing their home on the Christmas Tour of Homes on Sunday. 11/30/2018 Jacy Lewis/191 News

Stephanie, from left, and Skeet Glover will be showing their home on the Christmas Tour of Homes on Sunday. 11/30/2018 Jacy Lewis/191 News

Photo: Jacy Lewis/191 News

Photo: Jacy Lewis/191 News

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Stephanie, from left, and Skeet Glover will be showing their home on the Christmas Tour of Homes on Sunday. 11/30/2018 Jacy Lewis/191 News

Stephanie, from left, and Skeet Glover will be showing their home on the Christmas Tour of Homes on Sunday. 11/30/2018 Jacy Lewis/191 News

Photo: Jacy Lewis/191 News

Christmas Tour of Homes creates unique experience with benefits for the community

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Richard "Skeet" and Stephanie Glover decided to participate in the Christmas Tour of Homes to give back to the community. They will open their home from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday for people who would like to tour.

Christmas Tour of Homes tickets are $10 and are available at odessarealtors.com.

Connie Coots, executive vice president of the Odessa Board of Realtors, has helped the Christmas Tour of Homes since the board started it 21 years ago.

"The purpose of the Christmas Tour of Homes is to raise college scholarship funds," Coots said. "We split the funds between Odessa College and the University of Texas of the Permian Basin."

Coots said it takes a unique person who is willing to open up their home to participate in the tour.

"It's not a home for sale. It has to be a home that someone lives in," Coots said. "It's a home that's lived in and loved."

Stephanie Glover has given back through her church, Grace Christian Fellowship, and other local nonprofits such as High Sky Children's Ranch and the Salvation Army. She has bought 30 or 40 Halloween costumes for the children at High Sky.

"I came in one day and there were Halloween costumes stacked everywhere in this house and I thought 'What the heck are we doing?'" Skeet Glover said. "Then the next day they were gone, and I didn't have to ask any more questions."

Denise VanCleave, a local Realtor, called Stephanie to ask her about participating in the Christmas Tour of Homes on Sunday.

The Glovers bought the home on 15 Candlelight Lane in 2013. Stephanie drove by the new home for sale and decided she wanted to move.

Stephanie has grown her collection of Christmas decorations over the years.

She said she started decorating in October to prepare for the Christmas Tour of Homes. Stephanie's daughter, Holly, helped her decorate this year, but usually she does it by herself.

The Glovers store their decorations in a 15-by-35-foot storage shed in the backyard and the garage, which is designated for Christmas.

"We have never parked in the garage," Skeet said, joking.

Skeet said his favorite decorations are the polar bears. One year he asked Stephanie to make a purple tree and since then they have had a tree decorated with purple. Stephanie's favorite room is her master bathroom and she loves decorating with nutcrackers.

Her favorite place to shop for Christmas decorations is Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

"We are kind of on a first name basis over there," Stephanie said.

Coots said there are about 100 volunteers who makes the Christmas Tour of Homes possible. There are four families participating this year and multiple sponsors.

"We are excited for the homeowners who have opened up their homes and the people who get so excited about coming in and looking at the home," Coots said. "People just love it, and we love it, too."

Skeet and Stephanie said they would like the community to attend the Christmas Tour of Homes to help increase the amount of scholarships Odessa College and the University of Texas of the Permian Basin will be able to give out to students.